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Independent, fact-based news for Whatcom, San Juan and Skagit counties
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News from the Salish Current June 2, 2023
Dear Reader—
Welcome to reporter Anna Ferdinand who treats us to a story about the little Skagit town of Edison. Nancy DeVaux recaps the community's meeting with state ferries officials in the wake of a less-than-stellar weekend of delays and strandings. And Kai Uyehara explores the revival of making charcoal as part of a major program to combat climate change. Read on!
I've had several conversations of late about how the local media can best inform voters about the upcoming election campaign and candidates. One modest suggestion has been to avoid asking the same questions and another has been to treat election coverage like a public service and remove reader paywalls to those stories.
Salish Current is open to talking to readers, other publications and organizations about our election coverage. Our stories are free to read without paywall. As I said last week, we'd like to know what you think we should ask our candidates.
• Write me using our comment form
• Write a letter to the editor of no more than 300
• Suggest to our managing editor a Community Voices essay of no more than 800 words.
Let others know about Salish Current by sharing this newsletter. Thank you! Happy June!
—Amy Nelson, Publisher
Salish Current affirms its commitment to work for truth, justice,
equity and healing for all people.
#SayTheirNames #BlackLivesMatter #NoJusticeNoPeace
Want more environmental news? Salish Sea News and Weather is a weekday curated compilation of news from Salish Sea news sources. Free via email or on the web.
Salish Sea News Week in Review June 2, 2023: Wear Orange!, Washington water quality, microplastics, Canadian biodiversity, Washington PFSA suit, B.C. marine restoration, refinery transition, Oregon youth climate suit.
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Quiet, once-quirky Edison wakes up changed post-pandemic
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Edison artist Todd Horton is among those who have been in town since pre-pandemic "Wild West" days. Both long-time and newer residents of the rural Skagit community are tracking changes as the town adapts to new energy. (Anna Ferdinand / Salish Current photo © 2023)
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By Anna Ferdinand
Change, along with opportunities and tensions, comes with a new bookshop, a brew pub and an artists cooperative in a town of 264.
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WTF? WSF meets island community’s ire after Memorial Day weekend debacle
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Where's the ferry? Washington State Ferries officials and passengers have been struggling for several years with challenges that created a perfect storm for travelers in the San Juan Islands over the busy holiday weekend — just in time for a regular annual meeting with the community. A shortage of deck crew, such as these preparing for docking in Friday Harbor, is one critical issue. (Salish Current photo ©)
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By Nancy DeVaux
Questions on crew shortage, breakdowns, overnight wait, emergency services, fare increases, Sidney run resumption — and more — aired at meeting on ferries.
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Making charcoal as a first step to facing climate change
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Biomass waste and woody debris burn inside special low-oxygen kilns at Skagit Soils in Mount Vernon as the compost facility produces biochar in partnership with the Kulshan Carbon Trust. (Photo courtesy KCT)
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By Kai Uyehara
A Whatcom-based organization seeks to engage farmers and forest owners in conserving carbon with a trust that makes environmental and financial sense.
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• Living on islands
• Disheartened by end of palliative care model
• Waiting to be 'seen' by PeaceHealth
Our policy: Salish Current welcomes letters to the editor from our readers. Letters should be sent with the writer’s name, address and daytime phone number. Those accepted for publication will focus on issues addressed in news articles or commentaries in Salish Current and be factual. No snark or put-downs will be acceptable; general nastiness will be rejected. Letters should not exceed 300 words and may be edited for length and clarity. Salish Current will publish letters sent to the editor at its sole discretion.
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Salish Current affirms its commitment to work for truth, justice, equality and healing for all people.
#SayTheirNames #BlackLivesMatter #NoJusticeNoPeace
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News from around the region...
(The links found here may have limited access for those who don’t subscribe to the source publication. Sorry for any inconvenience!)
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Health and Safety
Chickens. After reports of 13 cases of salmonella from backyard chickens, including a case in Skagit County, the state health department advises owners to wash hands thoroughly after handling poultry, avoid snuggling or kissing birds, and keep them and supplies outside. (KGMI)
Mosquitoes. A warming climate has meant better conditions for mosquitoes in much of the Northwest. A report from the nonprofit Climate Central says mosquito season is now 32 days longer in Seattle than it was 40 years ago. (KUOW)
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Education
School library. To balance a $3.2 million budget shortfall, the Anacortes School Board's move to eliminate para-educator positions at all of the elementary and middle school libraries, leaving the libraries without a dedicated staff person, left many people talking about the importance of this library resource and questioning the district's ability to provide students what they need with the new changes. (Anacortes American/paywall)
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The Border & Beyond
Port suit. The David Suzuki Foundation, Georgia Strait Alliance, Raincoast Conservation Foundation and the Wilderness Committee have brought a legal challenge against Ottawa's $2 billion plan for an expanded container terminal in Delta, B.C. (CBC)
Bat fungus. The fungus associated with white-nose syndrome, with up to a 95% mortality rate, was recentlly found in a bat guano sample in B.C., prompting scientists to ramp up surveillance programs. (Times Colonist)
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Nature
Skagit drones. The state Department of Fish and Wildlife is using drones to map 2,765 acres of the Skagit Wildlife Area before spraying several species of invasive plants. (Skagit Valley Herald/paywall)
Cordgrass. The Skagit County Noxious Weed Control Board is removing cordgrass, an invasive grass with the Latin name Spartina, from intertidal estuaries and marshes. (Skagit Valley Herald/paywall)
Nooksack sediment. Sediment loading in the Nooksack River around Everson is higher than 14 other major rivers in Puget Sound and reduces water flow, according to mayor John Perry. (Lynden Tribune/paywall)
PSP hunting. Local volunteers of the Drayton Harbor Harmful Algal Bloom Hunters regularly go to Birch Bay Village Marina and Semiahmoo Marina to take mussel and phytoplankton samples that are tested for Alexandrium, an algae that produces toxins that cause paralytic shellfish poisoning (PSP). (The Northern Light)
Island shores. San Juan County will hold a virtual public meeting to discuss its Cumulative Effects Evaluation of its shorelines for the Dept. of Ecology, June 7, 6:30–7:30 p.m. (San Juan County)
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Business
Local news. If you like to watch: host Austin Jenkins interviews Lunell Haught, who teaches at Gonzaga University and is the immediate past president of the League of Women Voters of Washington, and Dee Anne Finken, a former reporter for McClatchy newspapers who teaches journalism at Clark College and who co-chaired the state study on the decline of local news. (TVW)
Farmlands. The Skagit Farmland Legacy Program reports protecting about 14,000 acres of agricultural land, including 400 acres in 2022, from future development, about 16% of county land zoned as Agricultural-Natural Resource. (Skagit Valley Herald/paywall)
WSF meeting. Missed the May 31 community meeting held by WSF about the Anacortes-San Juan Islands route? Watch it here.
Butchering. Island Grown Farmers Co-op is launching an apprenticeship program sponsored by the Northwest Meat Processors Association and done through Montana State University North. At the end of the three-year program, graduates will become journeyman butchers. (Skagit Valley Herald/paywall)
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Community
Refinery transition. Over the next two years, Washington will devote a quarter-million dollars to analyzing the future of the state’s refineries, laying the groundwork for a clean energy transition that supports workers, safeguards communities, and protects the environment. (Sightline)
Lincoln Theatre. Roger Gietzen, who has been at the Lincoln Theatre in Mount Vernon for 26 years and the last nine as its executive director, will retire at the end of this month. (Skagit Valley Herald/paywall)
Kidney dollars. Debbie Ahl is retiring and passing her executive director responsibilities on to Zeenia Junkeer at the Mount Baker Foundation, which was endowed from the sale of the Mount Baker Kidney Center in 2016. (CDN/paywall)
Books and homes. Discussions by Kulshan Community Land Trust, the City of Blaine and Whatcom County Library System are underway on a proposal to combine building a new Blaine library and market-rate housing. (The Northern Light)
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Commentary
Ferry fare. Stephen Orsini writes that Guemes Island ferry fare increases threaten farming and working families on the island. (Skagit Scoop)
Fascism. Heather Cox Richardson shares a Memorial Day thought about the War Department's World War II message to service members about fascism.(Letter from an American)
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Arts & Leisure
Spelling bee. Bellingham Arts Academy for Youth presents “The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee,” a Tony Award-winning Broadway musical about an eclectic group of six tweens hoping to win the spelling championship of a lifetime. $12. Casts 1: June 2–4, New Prospect Theatre; Cast 2: June 9–11, BAAY Theatre. Information.
Brother Ray. 9th annual Brother Ray Benefit for the 6th-grade band kids features The Atlantics, Swing Connection Big Band, Squalicum High School Jazz Band and the Bellingham Youth Jazz Band. June 3, 2–9 p.m., Boundary Bay Brewery.
WCC music. Soloists and jazz ensembles from Whatcom Community College's music programs perform, June 6, 7:30 p.m. Heiner Auditorium, free.
Wooly dog blankets. Salish wooly dogs for thousands of years provided Coast Salish owners with fur made into blankets now on display at the Museum of North Vancouver until early July. (CBC)
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Jump in!
Farmlands. Allen Rozema, Executive Director of Skagitonians to Preserve Farmlands, talks about farmland preservation in a Skagit League of Women Voters forum. June 3, 10:30 a.m., via Zoom.
Work party. Join the Skagit Land Trust to celebrate National Trails Day and Make a Difference Week by sprucing up the trails at Guemes Mountain and Valley Conservation Area. June 3, 10 a.m –2 p.m. Register here.
Wear orange. "Safe and Sane Skagit" will be in orange garb informing folks on preventing gun violence. Cains Court, Edison, June 3, 9:30 a.m. photo; 10 a.m. event.
Explore Chuckanut. Explore Chuckanut Bay with the Koma Kulshan chapter of the NW Native Plant Society June 3, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Meet up location and day info.
Tree trees trees. Help keep trees alive by removing ivy on the Railroad Trial (between St. Clair and Niagara Streets). Whatcom Million Trees, June 3, 9 a.m–Noon.
Wear orange. Remember those who have died of gun violence and honor all survivors. Bellingham First Congregational Church, June 4, 11:30 a.m.
Naked bike ride. "Bans Off Our Bodies!” celebrates the 15th anniversary Naked Bike Ride on June 4, 4 p.m. Information.
Muddy Creek. Join the Skagit Land Trust work party to remove butterfly bush and Himalayan blackberry from a restoration planting area at the Muddy Creek Conservation Area. June 9, 10 a.m.–2 p.m. Registration.
WWRC. Join the Washington Wildlife and Recreation Coalition board and staff for a 2-day series of gatherings in the San Juan Islands. Lopez Island, June 14, 5:30–7:30 p.m., hosted by Tom and Sally Reeve; June 15, 11:30 a.m.–3:30 p.m., San Juan Island project tour. Details and RSVP.
Cascade River. Help remove invasive spotted knotweed and Scotch broom in a meadow at the Cascade River South 2 Conservation Area. June 16, 10 a.m.–2 p.m. Registration.
Juneteenth. Bring food and a blanket and enjoy the celebration at Bellingham's Maritime Heritage Park community picnic. June 17, 2–6 p.m. Information.
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Government
Elections
Public Disclosure Commission June 1, 2023
City of Bellingham Mayor
• Kim Lund: Raised $11,811.42, Spent $2,227.38
• Seth Fleetwood: Raised $1,000, Spent $1524.68
• Chris McCoy: Raised $0, Spent $0
• Joel Johnson: Raised $0, Spent $0
• Michael McAuley: Raised $0, Spent $0
• Kristina Michele Martens: Raised $0, Spent $0
Whatcom County Executive
• Satpal Sidhu: Raised $20,550, Spent $0
• Barry Buchanan: Raised $650, Spent $0
• Alicia Rule: Raised $4,077, Spent $0
• Misty Flowers: Raised $0, Spent $0
• Dan Purdy: Raised $0, Spent $0
• Sukhwant Gill: Raised $0, Spent $0
Aug. 1 Primary
Whatcom County candidate filings
Skagit County candidate filings
San Juan County candidate filings
San Juan County.
The county council does not publish its coming agenda for the public or the media before Friday's publication deadline. This is where the agenda is anticipated to be posted.
City of Bellingham.
The council will meet on June 5. Agenda items include:
Public hearing: Extension by six months of the emergency moratorium on acceptance of development applications in the Silver Beach neighborhood. Staff memo.
Committee of the Whole:
• Justice project ballot measure and resolution of values. Draft resolution to ballot measure.
• State legislative session recap. Staff memo.
The council will next meet on June 26.
Whatcom County.
The council will meet on June 6. Agenda items include:
County executive "state of the county" address
Public hearing:
Ordinance adopting amendments to Whatcom County Code Title 20, Zoning, to regulate short-term vacation rentals. Staff memo.
Other:
Request approval of letter of support for Mental Health Court. Staff memo.
The council will next meet on June 20.
Port of Bellingham.
The commission will meet on June 6. Video is available here. Agenda items include:
Consent agenda:
Approve Small City Economic Development Funds for projects in the cities of Blaine and Everson.
Presentation: Legislative update
The commission will next meet on June 20.
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Salish Current is a nonpartisan, nonprofit, online local news organization serving Whatcom, San Juan and Skagit Counties. Salish Current exists to protect and improve democratic governance by reporting and curating local news with independence and strict journalistic integrity.
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